President Obama will respect the wishes of Nelson Mandela’s family and stay away from the hospital where the 94-year-old former president is battling a lung infection.

Earlier this week, one of Mandela’s daughters called the international press “vultures” and his ex-wife is quoted by the BBC saying it would be best for Obama to keep his distance for now.

“I don’t need a photo op,” said Obama, who will visit the Robben Island prison, but not the freedom fighter once held there.

Obama, whose father was from Kenya, remains popular in South Africa, according to the BBC, although protesters in the capital rallied against his foreign policy.

— Posted by Peter Z. Scheer.

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